


Make The Yuletide Gay

by AMidnightDreary, Rabentochter



Series: Frostiron Advent Calendar 2019 [24]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Dorks in Love, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, Lonely Tony Stark, M/M, Mutual Pining, Sweet Loki (Marvel), Tony Stark Feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:28:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21916765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AMidnightDreary/pseuds/AMidnightDreary, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rabentochter/pseuds/Rabentochter
Summary: Except for JARVIS and the bots, Tony is alone on Christmas Eve - until he isn't anymore.
Relationships: Jarvis (Iron Man movies) & Tony Stark, Loki/Tony Stark, Tony Stark & Stark Robots
Series: Frostiron Advent Calendar 2019 [24]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1558924
Comments: 47
Kudos: 400





	Make The Yuletide Gay

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY HOLIDAYS, FRIENDS!!! 💕

“Alright, JARVIS. This is an evening like _any_ other.”

_“Of course, sir.”_

“Don’t sound so skeptical. I’ll just spend the whole night working and it won’t matter _at all,_ I’ll make coffee -” Tony paused, frowning at the glass he just wanted to pour some well-deserved scotch into. After a second, he closed the bottle again. “Or, you know what, I’ll just take this baby here down to the workshop with me. And this one, too.”

_“Do you think that’s -”_

“No reasoning with me on Christmas Eve, JARVIS,” Tony interrupted. “I’m _really_ not in the mood for that right now.”

It was silent for a moment, then JARVIS said, _“I know, sir.”_

The AI’s voice was soft in a way it wasn’t very often. Tony sighed and put one of the bottles down again. He flicked his thumb against the glass, snorting when it made the most pathetic sound he’d ever heard. It was too silent in the room - hell, in the entire house.

 _“How about a game of chess, sir?”_ JARVIS said, still so softly, as if he thought Tony might flinch at too loud noises. _“I beat you quite spectacularly last time, if I may say so myself. I’d be willing to give you a chance to restore your honor.”_

Tony barked out a laugh. He thought about it for a moment, then grabbed the glass again. Just one drink, that would have to do. Anything else would really be _too_ pathetic, even for him. “Fine, J. You win. Tell DUM-E to prepare the board, he can move the pieces for you.”

_“That’s not fair. He always puts them into the wrong places.”_

“JARVIS, buddy. You’re an AI with unlimited access to all existing info about chess tactics, and I’m just an old man with a few PhDs. You’ve got to have _some_ disadvantages.”

JARVIS actually sighed. _“Fine, sir. You’re the one who has to pick up all the pieces when he once again drops all of them.”_

“Yeah,” Tony muttered, “That’s just how it is, isn’t it?”

JARVIS didn’t say anything. Maybe he didn’t know what to say, and Tony couldn’t blame him for that. He wouldn’t have known, either. With one glance at the bottles he stepped away from the bar and made his way through the big and empty and dark living room, purposefully ignoring the undecorated tree that stood in front of the windows. The sun was going down over the sea, and Tony wasn’t sad or anything. 

Of course he wasn’t.

  
  


Not quite two hours later, JARVIS had beaten Tony quite spectacularly again, and Dum-E and U were playing with the chess pieces now. They would probably break them, but Tony didn’t really care. He sat on the floor, leaning against Dum-E who seemed to enjoy the attention, and nibbled on a piece of pizza that was still half frozen because U had had a brief but hurtful argument with the oven that had ended with, well. A broken oven.

“What time is it in Australia, JARVIS?”

_“4:19 AM, sir.”_

“Oh. So Rhodey’s probably not awake yet.”

_“I’m afraid not. Miss Potts is with her parents, but -”_

“No, no. Leave her be.” Tony tossed the piece of pizza onto the plate, annoyed with himself for being so - well, so _this._ “It’s fine.”

_“What about Dr. Banner? I’m sure he would -”_

“He’s with Betty, and I’m sure he would _not_ like to listen to me whining. It’s - it’s _fine,_ J, really.”

The following silence sounded very doubtful, but Tony ignored it. 

Yes, so. This sucked. Being in a team of superheroes was just so fucking _useless_ sometimes. One would think that he always had people to hang out with, and on every other day that might be true. But Christmas Eve? _Ha,_ as if any of them wanted to spend it with him when they could also spend it with other people. 

Bruce didn’t want to do science today, he wanted to be with Betty. Steve didn’t want to box today, he wanted to be with Bucky in fucking Wakanda. Natasha didn’t want to empty a few bottles worth of vodka today, she wanted to be on a farm in the middle of nowhere and play with her godchildren. Clint didn’t want to watch awful movies today, he wanted to be with his family. Thor didn’t want to eat all the poptarts Tony’s money could buy, he wanted to be with his brother. Pepper didn’t want to be with her mess of an ex-boyfriend, she wanted to be with her parents. Rhodey… fine, Rhodey not being here was just the army’s fault. Still. He was _not here._ And Loki - well, who knew what Loki wanted, but he certainly didn't want to be with Tony, either, because… Why would he, right?

Tony didn’t blame them all, he really didn’t. He _couldn’t._ They had all invited him, asked if he wanted to visit, if he wanted to come along, and he had told them all no. And he wouldn’t say anything else if they asked him again right now, which they wouldn’t. The thing was, he didn’t want to _be_ that someone everybody invited just because they knew he had nowhere else to go, because they knew that he _had nobody else._ Nobody who wanted to be with him tonight to - to do what, exactly? Celebrate the wonders of Christmas with him? 

Yeah, right.

Dum-E tugged at Tony’s hoodie. He made a concerned whirring noise, so Tony smiled at him and patted his head. “Don’t worry, kid. It’s all good. Wanna play fetch?”

_“Sir, there is someone at the door.”_

Tony, still sitting on the floor but now watching as DUM-E and U made a mess of the workshop on their search for the ball, looked up. “What?”

 _“There is someone at the door,”_ JARVIS repeated patiently.

“What?”

_“Sir. You heard me.”_

“Yes, but - _what?_ Who?”

 _“I was asked to tell you to go looking for yourself,”_ JARVIS said, making Tony frown.

Usually, JARVIS’ didn’t obey the commands from anyone that wasn’t Tony. He listened to Pepper and Rhodey, sometimes, and over the last year he’d gotten a bit fond of Loki, too. So JARVIS not just telling Tony who the visitor was could only mean -

“I’ll be right there,” Tony said, already jumping up and jogging to the stairs that led up to the living room. He couldn’t help but grin a little - it was Rhodey, probably. He bet it was Rhodey.

It was not Rhodey.

Tony’s grin disappeared just a second after he had opened the door, not because he was disappointed or anything, just because he was _surprised._ Because, no, it definitely wasn’t Rhodey. It wasn’t Pepper, either.

“Hello,” Loki said. He was smiling at Tony openly, despite the hint of nervousness in his eyes. “Can I come in?”

Tony stared at him. For a few long seconds.

Loki slowly raised a brow. “Is that a no?”

“No,” Tony said, a little dazed. “I mean, _no._ It’s not a no.”

“So it’s a yes?”

“Oh, uh. Yes. Sure, come in.”

Tony stepped aside and Loki came in, and Tony might have stared at him like he was the eighth wonder of the world or something. He closed the door and watched as Loki took off his jacket and his boots, then ran a hand through his hair to get rid of the snowflakes that had gotten caught in it. Norwegian snowflakes, no doubt. Tony swallowed and cleared his throat, trying to gather up enough clear thoughts to say something. Sadly, Loki was faster.

“I’m sorry I’m so late,” he said, frowning a little. “But Thor wouldn’t let me go, and I… well. I wasn’t sure if I would be welcome at all.”

That made Tony snap out of his stupor. “What, welcome - welcome _here?”_

Loki put his hands behind his back; he did that when he wanted to hide their fidgeting. “Yes.”

Tony didn’t know what to say. This was insane. The silence lasted too long.

“I can go,” Loki offered, very quietly. “If you’d rather -”

“No, I - _No._ It’s just - I didn’t expect anyone to come.”

Loki frowned down at him. “I know. All the others are… somewhere else.”

“Yeah, that’s - that’s fine, though.” Tony cleared his throat again. “Loki, you - you don’t have to be here, you know. I know you’d rather be with Thor, you can -”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Loki interrupted him. “I told you, I’m only this late because Thor didn’t stop pestering me. Otherwise I would have been here at noon already.” He sighed. “ _Am_ I welcome now or not?”

“Hell, Loki,” Tony said. “I - Of _course_ you’re welcome.”

Loki’s shoulders sagged a little with obvious relief, and his face lit up. “Well, then. Have you eaten? I brought dinner, and I also have -”

He broke off with a soft _oomph_ when Tony threw himself at him in a hug. 

Tony put his chin on Loki’s shoulder and squeezed his eyes shut, not minding at all that he had to stand up on tiptoes. Loki’s body was surprisingly warm, his hands on Tony’s back gentle and hesitant when he finally put them there. One of them started moving in careful circles, and Tony wanted to hold him even tighter.

“Are you alright?” Loki asked after just a few seconds. He sounded concerned.

“Yeah,” Tony breathed out, and pulled back a little so that he could look at Loki. “Yeah, I’m - I’m fine. I’m _great._ I’m happy you’re here.”

And Loki smiled, so softly that Tony's heart skipped a beat. “Well, I’m happy to be here.”

 _God._ Talk about pleasant surprises.

A little more than a year ago, a spaceship with lots of Asgardian refugees had landed in Norway. Tony had helped them as much as he had been able to, and somehow that had led to him befriending Loki. He still wasn't entirely sure how exactly that had happened, but he was glad that it had. Now more than ever. 

And if he'd also been nursing a tiny crush since a little more than eleven months… well. At least he knew how _that_ had happened. It was all Loki's fault, of course. Loki and the things he did, things like _this._

Loki stood in the middle of the living room, frowning at the tree that couldn't _really_ be called a christmas tree, because that would have been an insult to all properly decorated christmas trees.

“Why isn't it…” Loki began, making a vague hand gesture. “You know. All ridiculous and tawdry like it's supposed to be?”

“Oh,” Tony said. “Yeah, I wasn't in the mood.”

Loki inclined his head to one side. “Would you like me to use magic?”

“Uh, no, I - it's something you do by hand. Usually.”

“Alright. Where are the things, then?”

“The things?”

“Yes.” Loki nodded, seeming determined. “We are going to decorate your tree. We could take it down to the workshop, I'm sure Dum-E would like to help."

Tony couldn't stop himself from laughing. “You're insane.”

“I know,” Loki said. “So?”

“Uh.”

“Come now. You clearly wanted to decorate it, otherwise it wouldn't be here.”

That was true. Tony just hadn't wanted to do it _alone._

He wasn't alone anymore, though.

“Yeah,” he said, starting to smile. “Okay.”

Loki teleported the tree down to the workshop, and then they went looking for the boxes with the Christmas balls and everything. They found it after a little bit of searching, and while they decorated the tree Loki told Tony about how they had celebrated Yule every year, up in Asgard when Loki and Thor had been children. Tony didn't do much else then look at Loki and listen to him and laugh with him, and honestly he didn't want to do anything else. Doing this was wonderfully easy. 

As it seemed, Loki wanted this evening to be the most ridiculous and awesome Christmas Eve in history. He conjured up horrible extra decoration for the tree and changed all colors until they were either green or gold, and he had a hideous Christmas sweater with reindeers on it for Tony because he had seen it on TV and thought it was hilarious. After some nagging from Tony Loki rolled his eyes and even magicked up a sweater for himself as well. He also had a Christmas dinner in one of his pocket dimensions that was by far the best dinner Tony had ever had, and they ate it on the floor next to their ridiculous tree and talked about complete nonsense, and it was - nice. 

So much _more_ than just nice.

It wasn't technically Christmas Eve anymore when they lay around on the ground side by side, looking up at the star Loki had put up on the top of the tree. It changed colors every few seconds. They had fallen into comfortable silence a few minutes ago, and Tony actually felt himself getting a little tired.

“Loki?”

“Hmm.” 

“Thanks.”

Loki turned his head and looked at Tony in mild surprise. "What for?"

"Uh, you know." Tony waved his hand. “ _This._ It's - it's pretty amazing.”

“It looks horrible.”

“I'm not talking about the _tree,_ Loki.”

Loki smiled at him, eyes glinting with good humor. “No?”

“No,” Tony said, laughing a little. “I am - I’m talking about you. Being here. With me. That's amazing.”

Loki looked away, up at the ceiling again. He stayed silent for a moment. “Yes,” he said then. “I… like it, too. Very much.”

And that right there? That was it. No _I knew you were alone and felt bad,_ no _I guess this is better than watching Thor eat all day,_ just - _I like it, too. Very much._

Loki was here with Tony because he _wanted to be here with Tony._

Tony swallowed. “Hey, Loki?”

Loki looked at him again. “Yes?”

“Uh. Okay. Look, there's something - something I wanted to tell you. Or ask you.”

Loki arched a brow. “Go ahead.”

Oh god.

“I thought - I mean, maybe we could -”

He was usually so much better at this.

“That is, if you want to -”

Tony stopped talking because something blocked his view of of their hideous tree. He blinked and stared up at the claws that obviously belonged to Dum-E, claws that held something that consisted of green leaves and small white berries.

Oh.

“Oh,” Loki said. 

“What the fuck, Dum-E,” Tony said.

Dum-E whirred happily at them both.

Tony looked at Loki and found him staring at him already. Loki's eyes were wide and impossibly green.

“Where did he even get that,” Tony asked flatly.

Loki swallowed. “I might have given it to him. Earlier.”

“Oh.”

“Yes.”

“So you - you do want to…?”

Loki kissed him. It was a pretty clear answer, even though the angle was a little awkward what with them both lying on the floor. It didn't last very long, either, just a handful of seconds and then Loki pulled back again. He was lying on his side now, propped up on one elbow, and it was all too easy for Tony to grasp Loki's sweater and kiss him again. He ended up lying half on top of Loki, whose hands were on Tony's back now to hold him close. When they eventually broke apart to get some air, the look on Loki's face was positively _giddy._

“Yes,” he said, breathless and grinning up at Tony a little crookedly. “I do want to.”

The wonders of Christmas, indeed.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find the art on tumblr [ here](https://rabentochter.tumblr.com/post/189843345294/make-the-yuletide-gay-the-last-story-in-the)


End file.
